You can’t beat British humour! One thing we are still best at in the world

[JennyTals]

I know it a time of terrible doom and gloom
trump, putin, shit weather, people struggling

but thank FUCK
for our good old sense of humor that keeps us strong !

Bill Bailey on happiness, not too bad, all things considered.

I’m in my 40s but when I was 11 or 12 my dad introduced me to the early BBC radio comedies. Utterly hilarious and groundbreaking for their time - The Goon Show, The Navy Lark, Round the Horne, I’m Sorry I’ll Read That Again.

I still love radio comedies now, Cabin Pressure, Old Harry’s Game, Revolting People, etc. Several great comedy tv shows started out on radio - The League of Gentlemen and Goodness Gracious Me for example.

There are just too many great British comedy shows/comedians to mention!

I'm similar in age and my Dad enjoyed the BBC comedy radio shows that were exclusive to the BBC. My Dad also liked The Young Ones, Alexei Sayle, Basil Fawlty, Blackadder, all very British in that the humour is poking fun at the class system and politics!

I am British but have Danish family and they are fans of much of this comedy.

For my generation, DH and I loved The Peep Show, The Thick of It but also People Just Do Nothing as the characters, the pirate radio station and the behaviour is all very recognisable when you have lived and grew up in those areas of London in the late 90s early 00s. It is a very specific kind of humour though, that perhaps doesn't export very well as It is so subtle and so place and time orientated, i.e the ungentrified early 00s West London, I can't imagine many finding it funny.

Very VERY upset are that mistake. It should have been:

Plenty of Irish output i think is hilarious. But you could show me Mrs Brown's Boys and it wouldn't raise a smile from me.

Really hope most people figured it was an error due to the fact I use the word "but" before it after saying find plenty of Irish output hilarious - plus because I actually wrote "world raise a smile"!!

I would like to make a public announcement that I do NOT like Mrs Brown's Boys!!!

As a non brit I agree. Maybe not the best in the world but the British are certainly known for it.
I am German and no one rates our humoour not even Germans themselves.
I disagree on the cakes though. Give me Austrian any day now they know how to make cakes and pastries.

Hmm i recall conversations with a grouo of europeans, french, gernan and east germany. This was back in the 90s at how outrqgeosuly funny british comedy was. Stating how the way public figures like prime ministers, and others in suthority were lampooned and how "it would never happen" in their respective countries beyond a very tame jibe, snd how such material was even allowed. Spitting image wss mentioned. It went hand in hand with "you have so much frèedom and dont even know it"

I agree with a previous poster about plugs. British plugs. So true.

The checkout person in Aldi earlier this week put her thumb through my pack of cherries and they went all over the floor......me being a bit marmite and wanting to make light of the situation exclaimed rather loudly that I'd popped my cherry.......one woman laughed so much she even gave me a high five and a wave from her car on the way out..........I would definitely not describe my uncouth without thinking "humour" as elite 😂

I was born in the Uk, but have family from all over and culturally I’m not “English”.

From an outsider I think British humour is very specific and particular. It’s funny if you find it funny. Some British sitcoms (proper British stuff that you’d find on BBC) has made me belly laugh and others have actually been quite cringe and distasteful. I don’t enjoy British stand up comedy a majority of the time though - there are a few comedians I’ve liked on the underground scene - but I’ve not found one I’d go back to. I do love British dramas though.

You can say that about most cultures though - everyone has a sense of humour Influenced by culture and upbringing etc. I find American humour probably translates the best across cultures.

That’s normal that not every comedy show will be a hit with everyone. British people are not all laughing at the same thing. However, the really good stuff has gone international and often been redone for other countries, like the Office for example. Where is all the other brilliant comedy from other countries? We occasionally get stuff from Australia, Kath and Kim for example and Flight of the Conchords from NZ but other than stuff from America, where is it all? Our comedy definitely gets transported round the globe.

There is some good satire.
I don't know how other countries compare on this tbh or on the sort of darker humour of something like Slow Horses.

There is good American comedy of course - I've not seen the new series but the original Frasier was gold, as was (going further back) MASH (won't attempt the asterisks as MN bolding will screw them up!) which I guess answers my own question re darker humour.

Australian here with English mum. Was brought up on recordings of Flanders and Swann, Goonshow on the ABC Radio, Peter Sellers impersonations, Tony Hancock, but also a few Americans like Bob Newhart and early Bill Cosby.

For those of you lucky enough to access Australian shows, OBVIOUSLY Australian is best, just watch Fisk with Kitty Flannigan and any other comedy on the ABC. My mum always thought the English are best ( see Flanders and Swann above) but of course our parents usually get these things wrong.

I havent read the thread, I am sure however that other Aussies have already explained that Aussie humour is best, and while of course it may have derived in part, it has importantly improved on the English sense of humour. HTH.

The Office was basically the jewel in the crown of British comedy (in my opinion).

‘Ultimate fantasy, Gareth?’

@FreddoSwaggins what a typo to make 😂. Glad you are in the right side of history on this one